Stefano Bellentani is an Italian consultant gastroenterologist, hepatologist, and academic. He is a Consultant

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

for Clinical Activity in Hepatology at the University of Italian-speaking Switzerland. Bellentani's research primarily focuses on liver diseases, particularly the impact of alcohol and metabolic factors on hepatic health. He received the 1994 Sheila Sherlock International Award for Best Oral Presentation (Dionysos Project) at the Biennial Congress of the International Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (IASL) in Cancun,

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. Moreover, his works have been published in leading academic journals, including ''

Annals of Internal Medicine ''Annals of Internal Medicine'' is an academic medical journal published by the American College of Physicians (ACP). It is one of the most widely cited and influential specialty medical journals in the world. ''Annals'' publishes content releva ...

'' and '' Journal of Hepatology''.

Education and career

Bellentani earned his degree in Medicine and Surgery in 1979, followed by a Ph.D. in Hepatological Sciences in 1988. He began his academic career in 1993 at the University of Modena and Reggio, where he held various positions. He served as a

Lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

Dietetics A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of ...

and

Nutrition Nutrition is the biochemistry, biochemical and physiology, physiological process by which an organism uses food and water to support its life. The intake of these substances provides organisms with nutrients (divided into Macronutrient, macro- ...

from 1993 to 2012 and as a lecturer in Sport Therapy from 2003 to 2013. In 2013, he got the qualification of Full Professor of Gastroenterology by the Ministry of University and Scientific Research. He has extensive administrative and professional experience. From 1993 to 1997, he served as an Advisor to the Health Management Commission of the Modena Local Health Authority. From 1999 to 2004, he was President of the Municipal Council of

Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...

, overseeing governmental functions. From 2011 to 2015, he was Director and Vice President of the Italian Society of Gastroenterology. Moreover, he serves as a Consultant Professor for Clinical Activity in Hepatology at the University of Italian-speaking Switzerland.

Research

Bellentani's studies have contributed significantly to understanding the prevalence, risk factors, and mechanisms underlying conditions like

alcoholic liver disease Alcoholic liver disease (ALD), also called alcohol-related liver disease (ARLD), is a term that encompasses the liver manifestations of alcohol overconsumption, including fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, and chronic hepatitis with liver fibrosi ...

(ALD), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and their more severe forms, such as cirrhosis and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In a 1982 study, he explored the susceptibility of chronic hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) carriers to

ethanol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the ps ...

-induced hepatic damage. He demonstrated that HBsAg carriers are at increased risk of liver abnormalities even at moderate alcohol consumption levels, suggesting abstinence as a precaution. His later contributions, particularly as Scientific Creator and Coordinator of the Dionysos Study, in collaboration with Prof. Claudio Tiribelli, provided valuable epidemiological insights into liver disease, including the prevalence of HCV viral infection and NAFLD in the general population. A 1997 study, highlighted that daily alcohol consumption above 30 grams increases the risk of

cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, chronic liver failure or chronic hepatic failure and end-stage liver disease, is a chronic condition of the liver in which the normal functioning tissue, or parenchyma, is replaced ...

and non-cirrhotic liver damage, with drinking patterns such as consuming alcohol outside meals exacerbating the risk. In subsequent work, also within the Dionysos Study, Bellentani investigated

hepatic steatosis Fatty liver disease (FLD), also known as hepatic steatosis and steatotic liver disease (SLD), is a condition where excess fat builds up in the liver. Often there are no or few symptoms. Occasionally there may be tiredness or pain in the upper r ...

in relation to alcohol consumption and obesity. A 2000 study showed that steatosis is significantly associated with obesity and heavy drinking, with obesity playing a more prominent role. Building on this, his 2005 research revealed that NAFLD is 25% prevalent across populations and closely linked to

metabolic syndrome Metabolic syndrome is a clustering of at least three of the following five medical conditions: abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high serum triglycerides, and low serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Metabolic syndro ...

components like obesity,

hyperglycemia Hyperglycemia is a condition where unusually high amount of glucose is present in blood. It is defined as blood glucose level exceeding 6.9 mmol/L (125 mg/dL) after fasting for 8 hours or 10 mmol/L (180 mg/dL) 2 hours after eating. Blood gluc ...

, and

dyslipidemia Dyslipidemia is a metabolic disorder characterized by abnormally high or low amounts of any or all lipids (e.g. fats, triglycerides, cholesterol, phospholipids) or lipoproteins in the blood. Dyslipidemia is a risk factor for the development of ...

. In 2006, Bellentani co-developed the Fatty Liver Index (FLI), a non-invasive algorithm using simple clinical measures like

body mass index Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (Mass versus weight, weight) and height of a person. The BMI is defined as the human body weight, body mass divided by the square (algebra), square of the human height, body height, and is ...

triglyceride A triglyceride (from '' tri-'' and '' glyceride''; also TG, triacylglycerol, TAG, or triacylglyceride) is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids. Triglycerides are the main constituents of body fat in humans and other vertebrates ...

s, and gamma-glutamyl transferase to predict fatty liver. His 2010 and 2018 studies highlighted the growing burden of NAFLD and NASH, identifying them as emerging

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...

challenges globally. He emphasized the influence of demographic trends,

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...

, and

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

on the increasing prevalence of these diseases and stressed the importance of public health measures to mitigate the impact.

Clinical activity

Bellentani has extensive clinical experience in Gastroenterology and Hepatology. From 1987 to 2015, he served as a Consultant Gastroenterologist for the Public Health System at Carpi and Baggiovara Hospitals. Later, between 2014 and 2015, he expanded his experience by working as a Locum Consultant Gastroenterologist in the Department of Gastroenterology at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, covering both Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals in the UK. Following this, from 2015 to 2016, he took on a similar role at Frimley Park Hospital National Health Trust ( UK), focusing on both gastroenterology and hepatology. Subsequently, from 2016 to 2019, he served as the Head of the Gastroenterology and Hepatology Service at Santa Chiara Clinic. In addition to this role, he practices as an Independent Gastroenterologist at his private medical clinic in

Locarno Locarno (; ; Ticinese dialect, Ticinese: ; formerly in ) is a southern Switzerland, Swiss List of towns in Switzerland, town and Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district Locarno (district), Locarno (of which it is the capita ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, and also serves as a Consultant in Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Poliambulatorio Villa Richeldi in Carpi, Modena,

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Selected articles

*Bellentani, S., Saccoccio, G., Masutti, F., Crocè, L. S., Brandi, G., Sasso, F., ... & Tiribelli, C. (2000). Prevalence of and risk factors for hepatic steatosis in Northern Italy. Annals of internal medicine, 132(2), 112–117. *Bedogni, G., Miglioli, L., Masutti, F., Tiribelli, C., Marchesini, G., & Bellentani, S. (2005). Prevalence of and risk factors for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: the Dionysos nutrition and liver study.

Hepatology Hepatology is the branch of medicine that incorporates the study of liver, gallbladder, biliary tree, and pancreas as well as management of their disorders. Although traditionally considered a sub-specialty of gastroenterology, rapid expansion ...

, 42(1), 44–52. *Bedogni, G., Bellentani, S., Miglioli, L., Masutti, F., Passalacqua, M., Castiglione, A., & Tiribelli, C. (2006). The Fatty Liver Index: a simple and accurate predictor of hepatic steatosis in the general population. BMC gastroenterology, 6, 1–7. *Ratziu, V., Bellentani, S., Cortez-Pinto, H., Day, C., & Marchesini, G. (2010). A position statement on NAFLD/NASH based on the EASL 2009 special conference. Journal of Hepatology, 53(2), 372–384. *Bellentani, S., Scaglioni, F., Marino, M., & Bedogni, G. (2010). Epidemiology of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Digestive diseases, 28(1), 155–161.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellentani, Stefano Italian gastroenterologists Italian academics University of Modena and Reggio Emilia alumni Hepatologists Living people